Cleaning with steam

[MRBeyer]

One of my friends is a jeweler and I always stop in to show off the latest yard sale finds. He uses a steam cleaner to take surface and crevice dirt off jewelry as a steam jet doesn't scratch the surface. For jewelry he then uses a jewelers cloth to buff any remaining oxidation off and buff the surface to a high gloss.

The reason why I am bringing this up is that I realized his steam jet cleaner is nothing more than a glorified espresso maker. I bought a used one at a yard sale for $5 and I use the frothing jet and a pair of rubber coated tweezers to hold the piece so I don't burn my hands. It seems pretty effective at cleaning the crevices, doesn't scratch the surface, and only leaves a light coating of oxidation. Should work very well on old coins or collectibles. Maybe even on glass?? With just a layer of oxidation left, it should be in a perfect condition for an appraiser to judge it better.

As for Jewelry, he warned me to not use it on any soft gems or precious materials like opal, amber, pearls, and such. Hard gems, metals, and most man made gems seem safe from my experience. Also, it doesn't work on leaf covered materials but does work on plated materials when care is used.

Any expansion on this topic would be greatly appreciated.

 

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[RPG]

I have been watching this post for a while and am surprised no one has commented. Have you tried steam cleaning anything yet. I'd love to see some pics.

Randy

 

[MRBeyer]

What timing, I just bought a whole bunch of jewelry today at yard sales including some coins. I will try cleaning them tomorrow with both steam and then with a cleaning cloth. I'll post before and after pictures. So far this has been an effective combination for me to clean old jewelry. Just got the camera hooked up to the computer so I can d/l the pictures, need to wait until tomorrow as I am teaching someone to spot silver and gold at yard sales.

 

[ReidMan]

Yea I posted before about using a steam cleaner it works good on all the lose stuff. I bought it at Costco $89.00 and we do the sink tube and floors with it also.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10771195

 

[MRBeyer]

Here are the pics I promised. Cleaned with steam and in most cases with a jewelers cloth. I also added a picture of the gunk left on the counter top from using the steam cleaner. Most of the gunk came from between the links of the herringbone necklaces.

 

[BuckleBoy]

How well does this work on Dug coins like coppers or blasting the dirt off a silver coin without scratching it?

Currently I use a camel's hair brush and hard running water on my silvers (I do Not field clean them)--but this seems like it would be better.

I would like to see some photos if anyone tries this on copper coins.



Regards,



Buckles